Last year, in the 2023-24 season, it was the defense of the Minnesota Timberwolves that ultimately got them to the level of a tried-and-true contender in the Western Conference. Their strong individual and team defense smothered opponents all season long, and it was one of the main reasons the Wolves were able to take down the then-defending champion Denver Nuggets in the second round of the playoffs.
To begin the current NBA season, it was a bit more of a process for Minnesota to get back to playing at that kind of game-changing level on the defensive side of the basketball. But after some early-season adjustments, the Timberwolves have mostly bounced back and are looking much more like the squad that dominated on defense all of last season.
As we know, defense is a necessity for winning championships in the NBA. You are hardly ever going to go deep in the playoffs without being a strong defensive team, and even if you do, you are never going to win a championship focusing exclusively on playing offense and putting points on the board. This defensive improvement we are seeing from the Timberwolves bodes well for their future.
NBA standings ordered by defensive efficiency
Ranking | Team | Defensive efficiency |
|---|---|---|
1 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 1.021 |
2 | Orlando Magic | 1.056 |
3 | Houston Rockets | 1.058 |
4 | LA Clippers | 1.061 |
5 | Boston Celtics | 1.068 |
6 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 1.072 |
7 | Memphis Grizzlies | 1.076 |
8 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 1.083 |
9 | Golden State Warriors | 1.086 |
10 | Detroit Pistons | 1.093 |
11 | Milwaukee Bucks | 1.094 |
12 | Miami Heat | 1.097 |
13 | Charlotte Hornets | 1.102 |
14 | Dallas Mavericks | 1.108 |
15 | Atlanta Hawks | 1.111 |
16 | Brooklyn Nets | 1.111 |
17 | Los Angeles Lakers | 1.111 |
18 | New York Knicks | 1.113 |
19 | Sacramento Kings | 1.115 |
20 | Denver Nuggets | 1.116 |
21 | Indiana Pacers | 1.117 |
22 | San Antonio Spurs | 1.122 |
23 | Philadelphia 76ers | 1.122 |
24 | Portland Trail Blazers | 1.124 |
25 | Toronto Raptors | 1.127 |
26 | Chicago Bulls | 1.134 |
27 | Phoenix Suns | 1.136 |
28 | New Orleans Pelicans | 1.157 |
29 | Washington Wizards | 1.158 |
30 | Utah Jazz | 1.164 |
Currently, Minnesota ranks sixth in the association when it comes to defensive efficiency. As of this writing, they stand behind only the Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets, LA Clippers and Boston Celtics in this category.
To do this despite some pretty major roster turnover to begin the year for a team that went to the conference finals last season is more than a little impressive. It shows the kind of overall talent Chris Finch's squad has in terms of defensive ability, but it also shows a collective buy-in to retaining that high defensive impact as one of the team's main identities even after the roster-shaking trade that brought in Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo.
Perhaps even more impressive is that Minnesota has remained in the top six in defensive efficiency even while being without some of Finch's main rotation guys. It certainly helps that some of the new guys getting minutes in the interim are known for their abilities on defense. Jaylen Clark, for example, has been an absolute killer on that side of things.
Looking at this ranking should give Timberwolves fans optimism about how this season could still turn out. There have been plenty of frustrations, but the blueprint for Minnesota to make another deep postseason run behind strong defense is right there.